Our friends at Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks are currently running a fan favorite photo contest on their Facebook page. This photo of Aster Lake by Scott Toste is one of the favorites. To vote, click here.

On this date 204 years ago, President Abraham Lincoln was born in a log cabin similar to this one. For over a century people from around the world have come to rural Central Kentucky to honor the humble beginnings of our 16th president, Abraham Lincoln.  His early life on Kentucky’s frontier shaped his character and prepared him to lead the nation through Civil War.  The country’s first memorial to Lincoln, built with donations from young and old, enshrines the symbolic birthplace cabin. 

Photo: National Park Service

The distant mountains, as seen here from the Continental Divide, are the Absaroka Mountains which border the eastern side of Yellowstone National Park.

Photo: National Park Service

A photograph taken at Thorofare Mountain Overlook on September 9, 2012 in Shenandoah National Park. The dead tree in the foreground was one of the most beloved subjects in the park because of the great composition that it set up: a compliment of old life and new sunrises. This was the last picture that we captured of this iconic tree before it fell over. It’s amazing how much of a connection you can feel towards something that would be quickly overlooked in a different setting.

Photo: National Park Service

Some images are just plain extraordinary — and often, the photographer has invested a great deal of time and effort to make that image happen. Photographer Dave Morrow describes the process of making this image from Mount Rainier National Park in early October 2012:

“I went up to Sunrise Point at Mt. Rainier last weekend with my buddy Keith. After a lame sunset, we waited for the Milky Way to come out. The placement was just perfect & the sky was pitch black! Time to jack up the ISO and shoot some stars… This was one of many from the night:)”

Visit Rainier on a beautiful day, and you’ll get a great photograph. Stick around for the sunset, and you’ll often get an exceptional photograph. Wait till the chill of October sets in on a clear night, and stand around fiddling with your camera for a few hours in the dark… and the results just might be extraordinary.

Photo by Dave Morrow - www.DaveMorrowPhotography.com

How do bison survive the snowy Jackson Hole winters? Well, having a big head helps! Bison can use their heads as a snowplow in winter, swinging it from side to side to sweep aside the snow on the ground. 

Photo: National Park Service 

This is the coolest spot for a Christmas Tree that we’ve ever seen. This is in Kenai Fjords National Park in Alaska.

Photo: National Park Service 

A spectator takes in the awesome display of the ocean’s power at Thunderhole in Acadia National Park in Maine.

Photo: Michael Rickard 

Still stuffed from Thanksgiving? Why not work some of it off on our public lands? Most people live within driving distance of a National Park, Wildlife Refuge, or other public lands. Here’s a great shot from Arches National Park earlier this week. 

For more information on public lands near you, visit www.recreation.gov today.

Photo: National Park Service 

This Saturday, over 170,000 volunteers are expected to roll up their sleeves as part of National Public Lands Day. You can visit http://bit.ly/nKsSH9 to find a project site near you and join in the fun. And even if you don’t volunteer, all national parks and most other federal public lands will be offering free entrance to everyone tomorrow. So come on out and celebrate your national public lands!

Photo: National Public Lands Day